Interest in space and rocketry was generated by the launching of sputnik, the world's first satellite, by the Soviet Union in 1957. This was the year the Space Age was born as well as the hobby of model rocketry. Interest in rockets continued to grow with America's Mercury rocket program followed by the Apollo missions and the shuttle launches. Model rocketry is miniature astronautics. It brings the size, weight and complexity of rockets down to a level that an individual can understand and therefore share in the experience and wonder of rocketry. Participation in this hobby has helped hobbyists learn more about Newton Laws of Motion, electronics, ballistics, gravitation, aerodynamics, meteorology and optics. A greater understanding of the mathematical theories inherent in these technologies have been learned by the hobbyist over the years as well as a greater understanding of space flight.
Model rocketry has brown into an international aerospace sport with international competition rules established by the Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI) of Paris, France. As a result of man's continued fascination with rockets and space flight, the hobby has spread worldwide to countries such as Canada, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, East and West Germany, Poland, England, France and the Soviet Union. It is a sport which unites persons of all countries who share in the wonder of space flight.
Model rocketry has evolved into one of the safest of all hobbies. The Safety Code is written in 1957 which established a set of common sense rules which are voluntarily followed by model rocket hobbyists. Adherence to these rules is meant to ensure the hobbyists' own safety and the safety of spectators.
The Safety Code mandates that an electrical launch control system be used by the hobbyist. Model rockets must be ignited electrically for accurate and precise ignition of solid propellants. This accuracy cannot be achieved with a fuse launch system. In the prior art, the launch controller's components included: a battery, a continuity light, a switch, a safety interlock key, 10 feet of wire and clips for connecting the wires to the engine igniter. The launch controller was first connected to a battery and the clips were connected to the igniter. The safety interlock key was then inserted to arm the launcher. At this time, the continuity light illuminated, indicating that there was a continuous circuit through the controller and the igniter. When the launch switch was pressed, the lamp was cut out of the circuit and the full voltage of the battery was applied to the igniter.